


The True Knowledge

by Fafsernir



Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Crowley's Name is Crawly | Crawley (Good Omens), Eternity, Ineffable Husbands Week 2019, M/M, Poetry, The True Knowledge (Oscar Wilde)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-08
Updated: 2019-09-08
Packaged: 2020-10-12 14:35:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20565959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fafsernir/pseuds/Fafsernir
Summary: Crawly had been assigned full-time on Earth, but he didn't know what he was supposed to do. There wasn't an example to follow. He was alone, on Earth. Well, almost alone.





	The True Knowledge

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Justafewthingstosay](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Justafewthingstosay/gifts).

> For the [Ineffable Husbands Week's](https://ineffablehusbandsweek.tumblr.com/post/187228656901/ineffable-husbands-week-and-nsfw-ineffable) Day 7: Eternity / Destiny / Ineffable
> 
> I was looking for quotes about eternity and ended up with Wilde because... Reasons. And it was the perfect opportunity to thank the very wonderful [Justafewthingstosay](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Justafewthingstosay) for her support with more than one of these Ineffable husband week prompts, and general support in being an amazing friend! Thank you <3 (and go read her amazing works!)  
Poem: The True Knowledge, by Oscar Wilde

> _Thou knowest all; —I seek in vain _
> 
> _ What lands to till or sow with seed; _

The world was vast. So much more extensive than the Garden had been. It was huge, and humans started to spread all across it quickly. Crawly was supposed to tempt them. He had been so successful with Eve and Adam that he had been assigned to Earth full time.

It was better than being stuck in Hell, of course, but Crawly wasn’t sure of what to do. What was considered a temptation? They didn’t have an example to follow, or instructions to read, everything was quite new. Crawly had not thought giving knowledge was considered a sin in itself. He had suspected it might be – he had fallen for his questions, after all – but he had thought She would be more forgiving for her newest creation.

She was not, as Crawly noticed throughout the centuries.

The first temptations were hard. Crawly had no idea who to tempt, what to do. People had such short lives, and he had to find damnable actions and thoughts for them before they could pass away. It was not easy.

> _ The land is black with briar and weed, _
> 
> _ Nor cares for falling tears or rain. _

The first temptations felt wrong. Crawly didn’t want to be there, he didn't want to do that. He missed the stars. He missed the feeling that filled him every time he would finish one, every time he would breathe life into a newborn star or constellation. He had loved creating, shaping.

Earth was different. It was unlike Hell, and better on so many levels – you could see the stars, for one – but it was unlike the stars as well. Crawly wasn’t floating anymore. He stood on concrete grounds. He couldn’t fly anymore. He was stuck on Earth, he hadn’t seen his wings in so long – he couldn’t blend in with his eyes, the mark on his cheek, and his wings, so he had taken away the only thing he could control. 

He heard things about the intriguing angel. He felt the curious angel. He had already spotted his singular signature when he miracled something up. Hell had advised him to keep an eye out for angels, because they had intel that one could be walking among humans – they were only a few decades late. Crawly obeyed. It gave him an excuse to keep track of Aziraphale.

He had always wanted to stumble upon him, ever since they had parted under that first rain, after standing there, watching the two first humans walk away. He had never dared. What could he possibly have said?

> _ Thou knowest all; —I sit and wait _
> 
> _ With blinded eyes and hands that fail, _

Crawly was not good at temptations, he realised. Not in a sinful way, at least. He didn’t like forcing – nudging – people to sin in order to condemn their souls. They didn’t really have a choice, and Crawly refused to go by these principles. He had given the Forbidden Fruit so humans were able to choose. He was taking this away by pushing them towards evil. He was persuaded he could make them have to take a decision.

He presented it as followed: humans making a decision by themselves were even more worthy of Hell, and demons could access new ways of torturing. They had liked it.

Crawly was not great at it, though. His hands were used to creating stars, not damning humans. People didn't trust him because of his eyes, too. He was too unique for them, so it was harder to leave them a choice without influencing their minds to ignore his monstrous features, as they called it.

Crawly started to miss Aziraphale.

> _ Till the last lifting of the veil _
> 
> _ And the first opening of the gate. _

He met him again.

Humans had come a long way already, they had started to raise habitations from the ground to live in and domesticated animals to feed themselves. It became easier to tempt them – to steal a sheep, to lie with another human, to lie to another human… Crawly started to get used to living among them.

That was when he bumped into the angel.

He had forgotten how… pure, Aziraphale looked. All in white, with his shy smile and his white curls. With his very controlled position, while Crawly had never really let go of his serpentine origin. He had slithered from Eden, and had never stopped.

Aziraphale was quite a handsome angel, Crawly instantly thought when he saw him again. He was not thinking about him as his enemy, he had no intention to fight with him. He smiled to him, because it was the only real familiar face around Earth. He had been feeling him around for so long that he felt like he knew him already. 

They didn't talk much. Aziraphale had not warmed up to him yet. The guardian of the Eastern Gate was not ready to open up.

Crawly waited. He figured they would have time to get to know each other, and would stop talking about Hell and Heaven, and temptations and miracles. Crawly wanted a friend, he realised that day.

> _ Thou knowest all; —I cannot see; _
> 
> _ I trust I shall not live in vain: _

He waited such a long time. He perfected his temptations. He didn’t need to tempt them to do crimes, he could condemn their souls in much funnier ways, that hopefully didn’t backfire on him – except that it always did. He started to aim for long-term temptations. It took years for a soul to be damned with the way he felt comfortable doing, but he had an eternity to live anyway.

It wouldn’t be entirely true to say that Crawly lived to meet Aziraphale again, but on some days, the thought that he would hopefully grow closer to the angel kept him going. 

He still spent a lot of time questioning, wondering why things were a certain way, and not another, easier way. He was curious about Aziraphale. He didn’t know why he accepted to speak with a demon, but Crawly wanted to test those limits, maybe. Would Aziraphale ever become a friend? Why had he not fully rejected Crawly already? 

Yes, on some days, when Crowley questioned his presence and purpose on Earth, the thought of meeting Aziraphale again kept him out of the water.

> _ I know that we shall meet again _
> 
> _ In some divine eternity. _

And they did. They always did.


End file.
